By Iftikhar Hussain Jazib
Pakistan’s constitution is very Islamic in nature, renowned Ulema not only participated in its formative phase but they also took oath of allegiance to protect it by becoming the member of the parliament, the supreme legislative body in the country. The democratic system of government empowers every Muslim to strive for further Islamisation peacefully by joining the parliament. Therefore, many religious political parties are the part of democratic process with the slogan of Shariah and they have always a significance presence in the Senate and National Assembly of Pakistan to promote Islamic ideology in the law making. Moreover, mainstream political parties have Ulema at the top level and they also support them to become the member of the Parliament to participate in the legislation. Hence, a popular movement for Islamisation is required under the democratic constitution of Pakistan and the propaganda of banned terrorist outfits and violent extremist ideologies against the social contract of the people of Pakistan is misplace in this regard. As a matter of fact, the heavy criticism of liberal and secular forces on the Islamic nature of 1973 Constitution proves that Islamic ideologies could grow under it and they could also be implemented with public consent. Against this backdrop, the role of democratic values and Islamic provisions of the constitution in the implementation of Shariah laws is further elaborated in the article.
The democracy is a Completely Compatible System with Islam, as terrorist leaders have no public acceptance, they oppose democratic system in Pakistan. Islam is against heredity monarchies and it supports peaceful change in government with the consent of people, which is only possible in a democratic system. Therefore, Many Muftis and Ulema have participated in the elections in Pakistan and other Muslim countries such as Iran, Turkey, Indonesia, Malesia and Bangladesh. They remained a part of democratic governments, and they produced literature to make it evident that democracy is a completely compatible system with Quran-o-Sunnat. Quran instructs Muslims to manage public affairs with consultation, “Shura” and modern parliament in a democratic dispensation is its best form to develop consensus in the matters of common interest. In this regard, a parliamentary democratic system in Pakistan is the best form of government to run public affairs with the consultation. Similarly, Holy Prophet (PBUH) often followed the principle of majority for important decisions and it is the basic value of democracy. Moreover, vote is the modern equivalent of “bait” and elections could be related to the tradition of 4 guided caliphs who became rulers after the public expression of consent of Muslims. Therefore, some renowned Muftis had issued Fatwas to declare vote a public trust and a religious duty of an individual Muslim.
Quran-o-Sunnat emphasise on human rights a lot and democratic system provides protection to basic human rights. Therefore, a Muslim could practice teachings of Islam very effectively under a democratically elected government. The constitution of Pakistan provides safeguards for basic human rights and superior judiciary is always forthcoming to give relief in the matters of public interest. Hence, it strengthens an individual Muslim to struggle for collective interests including the cause of Islamic ideology in the country. Similarly, the essential values of democracy, rule of law, equality, freedom of expression and accountability of the government are completely in accordance with the injunctions of Quran. These Aspects of democracy are the golden concepts introduced by Caliph Omer (RA) as an ordinary Muslim could question his decisions. To the contrary, terrorist kill Muslims who dare to disagree with them in Pakistan and they know that they could never survive in a democratic system. They believe only in violence and they have killed more than 84 thousand Muslims in Pakistan for a deviated ideology
Terrorist outfits and violent extremist ideologies justify attacks on the false pretexts of implementation of Islamic laws in Pakistan for nefarious self-serving agendas. 1973 Constitution is very Islamic in nature, it recognises Allah’s sovereignty, people of Pakistan would exercise legal authority as a trust within the limits set by Quran-o-Sunnat. The constitution professes Islamic identity openly, it declares “Islamic Republic of Pakistan” as the official name of the state and Islam as its official religion. According to the given definition, “Muslim” is he who believes in Oneness of God and finality of Prophet-hood. Hence, the state of Pakistan is completely religious. In addition, the President and the prime minister of Pakistan must be Muslim and all the constitutional appointments requires an oath to protect Islamic ideology. Moreover, the qualification for these institutions demand that aspirants should be free from major social evils prohibited by Quran-o-Sunnat as great sins. Thus, the constitution empowers every Muslim to elect pious leaders for the functions of the government to promote Islamic ideology in the country.
The most prominent Islamic feature of the constitution, Quran-o-Sunnat have precedence in law making as no law could be enacted by the parliament against the injunctions of Islam under the article 227. Council of Islamic Ideology and Federal Shariat Courts have been established to bring all laws in conformity with Quran-o-Sunnat. Therefore, peaceful means are available to every Muslim to promote Shariah laws in the country. Moreover, Zakat, Auqaf, Masjid and other Islamic aspects have constitutional cover and major sins are prohibited as social evils. Thus, Shariah laws are reflected in the constitution. Furthermore, the state must facilitate Muslims to adopt Islamic way of life and it should maintain relations with Muslim countries to protect the interests of Muslims in the world. Hence, the constitution enables every Pakistani to serve Islam religiously.
The democratic nature of Pakistan’s constitution and the precedence of Quran-o-Sunnat in enacting laws empower every Muslim in the country to make a peaceful struggle for implementation of Shariah, therefore a popular democratic movement is required to win the hearts and minds in the national elections for this purpose. Terrorist outfits and violent extremist ideologies are the propaganda of deviated individuals Destin to rejection in Pakistan.
M.Phil international Relations from Quaid-e-Azam University, the writer is a freelance contributor on the issues of violent extremism and militancy. He could be approached on X @radiant_j_007
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The views and opinions expressed in this article/Opinion/Comment are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the DND Thought Center and Dispatch News Desk (DND). Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of the DND Thought Center and Dispatch News Desk News Agency.
